


Dollhouse

by readwritebeawesome



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Based off the song by Melanie Martinez, Child Abuse, Drugs, Homophobia, Messed-up Family, Multi, Self-Harm, Sibling Incest, implied parent/child incest
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-08
Updated: 2015-10-27
Packaged: 2018-04-19 20:11:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 17
Words: 13,394
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4759424
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/readwritebeawesome/pseuds/readwritebeawesome
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After moving to a new town, John meets his internet friend Dave and his two sisters. Seeing them, he can't help but be jealous. They're such an awesome family. Dave's cool, Roxy is really pretty and funny and Rose even has her own small fan club! In his eyes, they're perfect. But are they really as perfect as they look?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

John tugged nervously on his coat sleeves as he stared out the car window. His dad was driving him to his new school. They’d moved into town just two days ago and now John had to go to a new school. Luckily his internet bro was at the school and promised to meet him. His name was Dave Strider. He was an ironic cool guy who liked apple juice and rapping. John kind of looked up to him.

“We’re here John.” John snapped to attention as his dad pulled up in front of the school. John grinned when he saw a white-haired boy with a red coat and dark shades standing at the entrance. _Dave!_

“See you after school dad!” John said, running out of the car. His dad waved and drove off. John waved back and ran up to Dave. “Dave! Wow, you look cool!”

“Of course I do John.” Dave said. “You look like a nerd.” John laughed and Dave gave him a fist-bump. “Come on, school starts in five minutes. We gotta figure out what homeroom you’re in.”

Dave led John to the office where the secretary gave him his locker number, timetable and combination and his homeroom number. Apparently it was the same as Dave’s. John’s first day at school was going great so far. John followed Dave to homeroom and put his bag in his locker. Then the bell rang and they sat down in homeroom.

A pretty girl with hair so blond it was about as white as Dave’s sat next to him and smiled.

“Hi Dave. So is this John?”

“Yep. John, this is my sister Rose.” John smiled and shook Rose’s hand.

“Nice to meet you!” he said. Rose smiled and nodded.

“Nice to meet you too John. Dave’s told me plenty about you.”

“Nothing stupid, right?”

“Don’t worry, he just mentioned what movies you’re interested in.”

“Dave! What exactly did you tell her?!”

“I just listed off all your favourite movies John. Calm your tits.”

“Don’t worry, I don’t judge people by their tastes in movies.”

“They’re good movies!”

“John, you could not make me watch Con Air for all the apple juice in the world.”

“That’s harsh Dave.”

Then the teacher walked in and introduced John to the class. Then he started talking about the school and everything that was amazing about it and John did his best to pay attention but after awhile he just spaced out. Then the bell rang and he followed Dave and Rose out.

“Rooooosey!” A girl who looked like an older Rose with different styled hair ran up and hugged Rose from behind.

“Good morning Roxy.” Rose said calmly. Roxy giggled and looked at John.

“Who’s this?” she asked, staring at him.

“This is my best bro John.” Dave said. “John, that’s our older sister Roxy.”

“Ooooh! Nice to meet you John!” Roxy shook his hand and grinned. “Wow, you’re cute!”

“W-what?!” John exclaimed. He felt himself blush and Roxy giggled.

“Roxy, stop flirting with my best bro and get to class.” Dave said.

“Sorry Dave!” Roxy apologized. She ruffled John’s hair and ran off.

“What class do you have first John?” Rose asked.

“Uh…math.”

“Great, same here. Let’s go.” Dave said. John grinned and followed him down the hall. Rose left for computer class downstairs.

For the whole day Dave helped John get accustomed to the school. He showed him the shortcuts and water fountains that had the better tasting water and what bathrooms didn’t have bullies in them. At lunch John sat at a table with Dave, Rose and Roxy.

“So John, how you likey this school?” Roxy asked.

“It’s nice.” John replied. “Bigger than the last one I went to.”

“Really? I always found it kind of small.” Dave commented.

“Dave, John came from a small town. This is a city.” Rose said.

“Oh yeah.”

“So Johnny, what kind of girls do you like?” Roxy asked, grinning. Dave sighed and Rose rolled her eyes.

“Um, I don’t know.” John said. “I’ve only had one girlfriend but I broke up with her.”

“Do you think I’m cute John?” Roxy asked, batting her eyelashes.

“Um…sure?” Roxy grinned and poked his nose.

“You’re adorable Johnny.”

“Roxy, stop flirting with Egderp.” Dave said. Roxy grinned.

“You jelly Dave?”

“I think Dave’s jealous.” Rose said, smiling.

“Don’t you dare start this you two.” Dave said. Roxy’s grin widened.

“Daaaave’s soooo jealous. You got a thing for Johnny?”

“No, now cut it out Roxy.” Roxy giggled and ruffled his hair.

“Suuuure Dave.” She grinned and threw some meatloaf at him. It landed in his hair.

“Oh it’s on!” Dave grabbed his own meatloaf and started chucking it right back at her. Rose moved further away as Roxy retaliated. “Hey John! Back me up here!” John grinned and threw a fistful of meatloaf at Roxy. It splattered against her shirt and she laughed. Pretty soon the three of them were in a crazy food-fight while Rose calmly watched from the sidelines.

John, Dave and Roxy got detention for the food-fight. John could tell his dad was disappointed with him when he found out. John apologized and promised it wouldn’t happen again.

“It’s fine.” his dad said. “But yeah, don’t do it again.”

So John went with Dave and Roxy in detention and wrote down on a piece of paper “I will not start food-fights in the cafeteria.” a hundred times. By the time he finished it was nearing supper time and his hand was sore and cramped.

“Cool seeing you John.” Dave said, giving him a fist-bump. John grinned and nodded.

“You too! Nice meeting you Rose and Roxy.” Rose nodded and Roxy waved. John waved back and got into his dad’s car. He watched Dave, Rose and Roxy get into their own parent’s car and drive in the opposite direction.

“So how’s Dave?” John’s dad asked.

“Great! He’s just as cool as he sounds online! And the two girls were his sisters Rose and Roxy.”

“I’m glad you’re having a good time. Sorry we had to move so suddenly.”

“It’s fine. I’m not upset.”

“Thanks John.”

When they got home John sat in his room and stared at the ceiling.  _I got to meet Dave! He’s so cool! And his sisters are really pretty. Not that I’m attracted to them. And they all get along so well._ John smiled to himself. He was an only child. The closest he had to a sibling was his cousins Jade and Jake and they didn’t get to visit anymore. Dave had such a cool family. John was jealous of him. But he wouldn’t admit it. Dave had the family he wished he had.

 

Roxy picked up the pizza box and bottle of Fanta. She carried them up the stairs and down a hallway. She stopped at one of the doors and knocked.

“Dirky! I got yer pizza and Fanta!” she said. She could hear her older brother get up from his chair or couch or something. Roxy bent down and opened the cat-flap on Dirk’s door. She slid the pizza box into the room and Dirk picked it up. Then Roxy slid the bottle of Fanta into the room. “Dave’s internet best bro moved into town. He’s pretty cute.”

“Oh.”

“Dave is doing…y’know. The usual. Same with Rose.”

“Oh.”

“Nothing new to report.” Roxy sighed. “You gonna come outta yer room?”

“Did you really just ask that?”

“I don’t think anyone but our family knows you even exist Dirky.”

“So?” Roxy sighed and gulped down some vodka.

“Whatevah. See yah Dirky.”

 

Dave lay on his bed with his arms spread out. His knife was clutched in his left hand. The lights were out but Dave still wore his shades. He glanced at the door and saw Rose standing in the doorway.

“You’re staining the sheets.” she said, pointing at his arms. Dave shrugged and stared at the ceiling. Rose walked over and lay down on top of him and hugged him. Dave would have hugged her back but he would have stained her shirt and that would be harder to cover up than the sheets. Dave could smell a bit of alcohol in Rose’s breath and she was a bit tipsy. Dave sighed and smiled at her. He reached up and brushed the bruise on her cheek.

“You need to cover that up now or you’ll forget.”

“Eh, I’ll do it later.” Rose said, shrugging. Dave shook his head and sat up.

“Now Rose.” Rose crossed her arms and pouted.

“You gotta wash your arms too then.” she said, pointing at them. Dave nodded and stood up.

“Okay fine. Let’s go.” He followed Rose out of their room and down the hallway. Dave could hear Roxy talking to Dirk upstairs. _I don’t even remember what he looks like anymore. Rose probably doesn’t either. I wonder if Roxy’s even seen him. I bet mom can’t even remember he exists._

“C’mon Dave.” Rose said, tugging his arm. Dave snapped out of his thoughts and kept following her. He could hear his mom in the kitchen yelling and his dad was still at work. He didn’t come home until late at night. And Dave knew what he would do then.


	2. Chapter 2

ectoBiologist [EB] began pestering gardenGnostics [GG] at 4:56 pm

EB: jade!

GG: hi john! how was your first day at a new school? :D

EB: great! dave was just as cool as he seems and he’s got two sisters: rose and roxy.

GG: that’s great!!

EB: yeah. they’re really fun to be around.

EB: i’m kind of jealous. i wish i had a sibling around my age.

GG: you’ve got me and jake!

EB: yeah, but you’re my cousins. it’s not really the same thing.

GG: well, i’ll try to visit soon! I’ll ask Grandpa when we can come over.

EB: okay. maybe i’ll be able to visit sometime.

“John! Supper’s ready!” John’s dad called.

“Okay, coming dad!” John called back.

EB: i gotta go jade. dad just made supper.

GG: okay! good luck with school!

GG: tell dave I say hi! :D

EB: why?

GG: i dunno. why not?

EB: eh heh heh, okay. bye jade.

GG: bye!

ectoBiologist [EB] ceased pestering gardenGnostics [GG] at 5:00 pm

John stood up from his computer and ran downstairs. His dad was in the dining room with a beef casserole sitting on the table. John grinned and sat down and his dad passed him his serving.

“So, did anything interesting happen at school today?” John’s dad asked.

“Um, well Dave’s older sister Roxy kind of flirted with me, and there was the whole food-fight and…yeah not much else.”

“His sister flirted with you?”

“Not that much really. She just asked what kind of girls I like and whether I think she’s cute.”

“Do you like her?”

“What? Uh…no not really. I mean, she’s a cool friend but I don’t have a crush on her or anything.”

“Okay. I was just checking.”

“Wait, what would you have said if I liked her?”

“Are you saying you do like her?”

“No! I’m just wondering!”

“Oh. Well, I probably would have said you can’t date her until I meet her.”

“Oh.”

“So you don’t like her?”

“No!”

“Okay.”

When John finished eating he went back up to his room. For awhile he just sat on his bed and wondered what he should do.  _I’ve watched all my movies, I’m not really in the mood to play videogames and Jade’s busy with target practice at this time._ John glanced at his laptop.  _I might as well see if Dave’s free to talk to._ John sat down at his laptop and brought up pesterchum.

ectoBiologist [EB] began pestering turntechGodhead [TG] at 5:47 pm

EB: hey dave!

EB: you there?

EB: helloooo?

TG: what do you want egderp?

EB: hi dave!

EB: i don’t have anything to do so i’m talking to you.

TG: that’s it?

EB: um, yeah?

TG: you need more of a life john

TG: how can you have nothing to do?

EB: i’m not in the mood to play videogames and i’ve watched all my movies over and over again.

TG: so you resort to talking to the strider

EB: yeah.

TG: then i will gladly keep you entertained egderp

TG: i’ll just write down some sick rhymes about a bored nerd

EB: what

TG: i’ll do it now.

EB: do it later how about? i’m not really sure I can follow one of your raps at the moment.

TG: what?

TG: what’s wrong with them?

EB: nothing. i just don’t think i can follow one right now.

TG: fine egderp

TG: fine

TG: i’ll just have to entertain you some other way

TG: so anyway…

TG: do you have the hots for roxy?

EB: no!

TG: okay, just checking

TG: that’s good to hear

EB: my dad already asked me during supper. can’t we just drop the subject?

TG: sure, whatever

TG: so when can I come over to your house?

EB: oh. i dunno. i’ll have to ask my dad about it.

TG: okay, cool

EB: will I be able to come over to your house?

TG: …probably not

EB: why?

TG: my parents will probably think we’re dating

EB: what?! why?

TG: because that’s what they’re like

TG: anyway, visitors also just annoy my mom

TG: so yeah, you can’t come over

TG: sorry about that

EB: it’s okay.

EB: i’m pretty sure you’ll be able to come over. my dad was cool with letting me bring my old friends here.

TG: sweet

TG: i wanna see egderp’s nerdy room

EB: my room isn’t nerdy!

TG: sure it’s not john


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to leave comments if you want. It'll make me happy. :) (No pressure).

Dave sighed and put his phone in his pant’s pocket.  _John really shouldn’t try to talk to me while I’m home. And he sure as hell shouldn’t come here!_ Dave peeked into the kitchen where Rose was curled up on the floor. Dave wanted to go help her but he could hear mom coming back. He ducked around the corner and held his breath.

“Have you learned your lesson yet Rose?” his mom asked. Dave heard Rose mumble something quietly and his mom hit her. “I said HAVE YOU LEARNED YOUR LESSON?! DON’T YOU EVER DO THAT AGAIN! YOU WANT PEOPLE TO KNOW YOU’RE A FREAK?! ONLY FREAKS NEED TO BE BEATEN! FREAK! FREAK!” Dave clenched his hands into fists and bit his tongue. _Rose isn’t a freak! Shut the fuck up you bitch!_

“I-I’m sorry! I’m sorry!” Rose cried.

“SHUT UP!” mom screeched. Dave heard something smash and he held his breath. 

“I’m sor—I’ve learned my lesson! I won’t do it again! I promise!” It went quiet and Dave crossed his fingers.

“Good to know.” Dave heard his mom’s footsteps as she walked upstairs. He ran into the kitchen and knelt next to Rose. Her left shoulder was bleeding and a broken bottle of alcohol was lying on the ground with her blood on it. Dave picked her up and cradled her in his arms. He was very careful not to press on her fresh bruises as he carried her up to his room. He pulled a first-aid kit out of the closet and started tending to her cuts. Rose cried quietly the whole time.

Dave heard a car pull up into the driveway and he knew his dad was home. He listened to his dad walk into the house, slamming the door behind him. Dave heard him talk to his mom then walk upstairs. Dave knew that first he went into his own room to put his stuff away. But Dave then heard his footsteps walk down the hallway and into his brother’s room. Dave clenched his teeth and felt angry tears prickle his eyes.  _Why is my family so fucking messed up?!_ Dave growled and banged his head against the wall. He grabbed his knife and slashed at his wrists. Rose hugged him and he could feel tears starting to run down his cheeks. He bit his tongue until it bled and he squeezed his eyes shut.

“It’s okay.” Rose whispered. Dave shook his head.

“No it’s not. It’s never okay, and it’s never gonna be. This family is fucked up.” Rose kissed Dave’s nose and he hugged her back. He didn’t care if he was getting blood on her white shirt. They would just burn it later and it would be okay. _No it won’t. It will never ever be okay!_ Dave felt himself cry harder and he clutched the fabric of Rose’s shirt. Rose stroked his hair and whispered in his ear.

“Shhh. Shhh. I’m here. I’m here, and I’m not going anywhere. I promise. Shhh.”


	4. Chapter 4

The next day John found Rose waiting with Dave for him. He frowned, worried, and ran up to them.

“Hey Rose-”

“I’m fine John.” Rose interrupted.

“It just gets kind of stressful for her to be a kick-ass role model.” Dave explained. “Oh, and our mom was in the middle of watching her favorite TV show and she gets pissed off if you interrupt her so that was all that was. Don’t worry about it.”

“Oh. Okay.” John followed them inside and upstairs to homeroom. Despite what Dave had said John didn’t feel very convinced. He still had a bad feeling.

“Heeeey John!” Roxy ran up and hugged John. “You’re soooo cute today!”

“H-hi Roxy!” John said. Rose rolled her eyes and Dave looked annoyed.

“Roxy, stop hugging my best bro.” Dave said. Roxy grinned at him.

“Daaaave’s jeeelly!” she sang. Dave sighed.

“No I’m not. Now let him go.” Roxy grinned and shrugged.

“See ya John!” She ruffled his hair and walked off. John waved to her, then followed Dave and Rose into homeroom. John half listened to the teacher’s lecture while Dave just played on his phone and Rose read her book. She gave John her copy of _The Philosopher’s Stone_ and he promised to return it as soon as possible.

“I don’t care how long it takes. Just keep it in good condition.” Rose said. John nodded and put it gently in his bag. Then the bell rang and he and Dave left for math class.

 

Roxy excused herself from school. She told them she felt sick. She pretended to call her mom to pick her up, but really she just walked home. She didn’t feel sick. Not really. She felt sober. Too sober. She needed some vodka. She’d gone light on the drinking last night and now she was feeling the results. So she eventually just hitch-hiked for half an hour to get home. The lady driving the car didn’t ask questions except where she was going and then dropped her off at her house. 

Roxy opened the door quietly and looked around. No sign of her mom.  _She’s probably drunk in her room as usual._ Roxy walked quickly and quietly up the stairs and into her room. She opened her closet and pulled out a bottle of vodka. She grinned and chugged a bunch of it. Then she sat down on her bed and poured some into a martini glass. She grabbed some more bottles and lined them up. She would probably go through more than that though. She grinned and stared at the ceiling.  _I should do this more often._

 

At lunch John noticed Roxy was absent. One of her friends said she’d gone home because she wasn’t feeling well. John was worried but Dave and Rose told him it was probably nothing.

“She’s probably just skipping.” Dave said. “Going home and hacking and whatever other shit she does.”

“Does she usually skip?”

“A few times.” Rose said. “But she makes sure not to make a habit of it.”

“Pretty much what any teenager does.” Dave said.

“I don’t do that.” John argued.

“Because you’re such a goody-two-shoes Egderp.”

 

Dave knew exactly why Roxy wasn’t at school. So did Rose, he could tell. During English class Dave left to use the washroom. But instead he ducked around to another hallway and texted Rose. Her phone was always set on vibrate and she would know to go for a bathroom break. A few minutes later she met him in the hallway.

“What are we gonna do about Roxy?” Dave asked. “She’s getting worse, isn’t she?”

“Well…I can understand why she drinks so much.” Rose said. “I don’t think we really have to do anything.” Dave resisted the urge to curse at Rose. _Of course. Rose has a drinking problem too after all._

“Fine, then let’s focus on another problem.”

“What’s that?”

“John. He knows where we live. I told him he can’t visit, but he still tried to.”

“He was just worried. And it isn’t like we can really do anything about it.”

“But seriously-”

“Just let it go Dave.” Rose reached over and touched his cheek. She stared at him and even though he was wearing his shades her eyes locked onto his. “Just let it go.” Dave wanted to shout at her, to say that he wouldn’t let it go, but he didn’t say anything. Instead he just nodded and walked back to class. _Rose doesn’t really care that much about hiding things, does she?! No, that’s not it. She just doesn’t want to have to try. She wants everyone else to try for her. She’s more like Roxy than she’ll admit._

 

John watched Dave walk back into class. John thought he seemed upset about something. But he just grinned at John and sat back down. John tried to say something to him but the teacher cut him off before he could.

“Work! No chit-chat, work!” John sighed and went back to the poem in front of him. There were a bunch of questions about the poem and the rhymes and stanzas and John couldn’t care less about them. But he hated to be a bad student so he dutifully did his work.

At the end of the day John waved bye to Dave and Rose before climbing into his dad’s car. He saw Dave whisper something to Rose and his worry grew.  _I’ve got a bad feeling._ When John got home he went upstairs and instead of reading the book Rose had lent him he sat at his laptop and started pestering Jade.

ectoBiologist [EB] began pestering gardenGnostics [GG] at 3:07 pm

EB: hey jade.

GG: john! hi! how are you? :D

EB: i’m good.

GG: hey, grandpa’s letting me and jake come over for your birthday!! :D

EB: oh, great!

GG: so, what do you want?

EB: hmm…i dunno. nic cage movies and the usual I guess.

GG: gotcha! lots of gushers too right?

EB: yep!

GG: and we can bring bec over too! i bet he’ll be really happy to see you! :D

EB: yeah.

GG: and i even got a new outfit to wear! Isn’t that great?! :D

EB: yeah.

GG: are you okay john?

EB: huh?

GG: usually you would complain about how much girls care about their looks.

EB: oh.

EB: um…

EB: i guess i’m just tired?

EB: or too excited for my birthday to think straight?

GG: yeah, i guess that could be it.

GG: make sure you get a good night’s sleep tonight!

EB: yes  _mom._

GG: :D

EB: it makes you happy if i call you mom?

GG: yeah! we used to play house together with jake when we were little and i was always your mom!

GG: remember? it was so cute! :D

EB: oh yeah.

GG: anyway, i’m gonna go present shopping for you now!

EB: oh boy!

GG: yep! bye john! :D

EB: bye!

ectoBiologist [EB] ceased pestering gardenGnostics [GG] at 3:09 pm

John sighed and stared at the ceiling.  _Why didn’t I just tell Jade I’m worried about Dave and his sisters? It’s not like it’s something I should keep a secret. But for some reason I just felt like I shouldn’t say anything. I wonder why?_


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for not updating for awhile! I did mean to, but I got sick over the weekend. After school on Monday I had a dance class. Tuesday the computer at the library I was using malfunctioned so I couldn't update. Wednesday and Thursday I've also been busy after school. I've realized that the only school days (aka definite update days usually) that I can update are Tuesday and Friday. :( So yeah, only two chapters a week, unless I get outside during the weekend. Sorry 'bout that! And here's a short chapter.

Dave sighed and slumped against the tree he was sitting in. He was hidden from view by the leaves so his mom couldn’t find him. He liked to climb up the tree when he couldn’t take his family anymore. Except Rose, he could usually stand her if she wasn’t drunk off her ass. Dave sighed and rolled the marijuana roll between his fingers. He put it to his lips and took a deep breath. He smiled to himself.  _Weed always helps._

“YOU STUPID BITCH!” Dave heard something break and he tensed up. He peered through the leaves and saw his mom bent over Rose. He clenched his teeth together and gripped the branches so hard his knuckles turned white. Dave hated what his mom did, but he hated what he was most upset about when she beat Rose.

Dave was jealous. He wasn’t a masochist or anything, that wasn’t his problem. His problem was that he had an attention-complex. He craved attention from others, no matter what kind. So whenever his mom paid more attention to Rose than him, even if she only hit her and would just hit him, he was upset. Very upset.

Dave watched his mom and Rose for a minute longer before turning away and covering his ears. He stayed like that for awhile, muttering “Fuck. Shut up. Stupid bitch. Shut the fuck up. Shut up. Shut up.” Then something grabbed his foot and he jumped.

“Dave?” Dave looked down and found Rose at the foot of the tree. He put his weed in his mouth and helped her up into the tree. She was cut and bruised all over. They would have to crack open the makeup box again. _I hope we don’t run out._ Dave leaned back and fingered the roll of weed. Rose stared at him for a few seconds. He glanced back at her and held up the weed.

“Want some?” he asked. Rose shook her head and held up an almost empty broken bottle of vodka. Dave sighed as she drank it all down instantly. She giggled and shook her head to clear it, which obviously didn’t work. Dave leaned forward and wrapped his arms around her. Rose grinned and kissed his nose. She reached to take his shades off but he batted her hand away. _I need these to cover up the black eye. Son of a bitch still hasn’t gone away._

“Dave Strider!” Dave sighed and glanced at the house. His mom was yelling for him. And while he was scared there was still that one part of him that was glad she was paying attention to him. God, he hated that part of him. “Dave Strider! You get your ass down here now!” Dave gave Rose a quick kiss, then jumped down the tree. He tossed the weed into the garbage can and snuck into his room upstairs through the window. His mom burst in a second later and glared at him. Dave tried to look as casual as possible and shoved his trembling hands in his coat pocket.

“Hey mom.” he said. She glared at him and slapped him. He stumbled and fell to the ground.

“Don’t take that tone with me!” she hissed. Dave nodded and she slapped him again. “I didn’t hear you!”

“Yes mom.” Dave said. She slapped him again and he turned his head away.

“Eyes on me!” Dave turned back and she kicked him in the gut. Dave doubled over and his shades fell of his face. He snatched them away just in time to keep his mom from shattering them.

“I need these to hide the black eye mom.” Dave said. His mom scowled at him.

“Don’t talk to me like that!” She grabbed him by his shirt and punched his other eye. Dave cried out and covered the eye with his hand. “Be quiet!” She punched the side of his head and Dave sprawled to the ground. She continued to kick and hit him and all Dave could do was cover his head with his arms and count the bruises he was getting. _God, I hate this fucking family._


	6. Chapter 6

John woke up with the same feeling he’d had for the last few days. He felt like something was wrong; like there was something he was overlooking. He thought about it as he got ready for school, but he just couldn’t figure it out. He kept thinking on the drive to school and only snapped out of it when his dad stopped the car and mentioned they were there.

“Bye dad.” John said. He ran up to Dave, who was waiting for him as usual.

“Hey Egderp.” he said.

“Hi Dave.” John followed him inside and upstairs. There was still some time until the bell rang so Roxy was hanging out with them. Rose just stood there and read her book.

“Hi John!” Roxy said.

“Hi Roxy. Why’d you leave school yesterday?”

“Eh, I didn’t feel too good. But I’m totes fine now!” Roxy grinned and gave him two thumbs-up. John grinned and nodded.

“That’s good.” he said. But on the inside he didn’t feel so reassured. _What’s with me?_

Then the bell rang and Roxy headed off to her homeroom. John followed Rose and Dave into the classroom and to their desks. Dave just played flappy bird while the teacher talked. John kept thinking about how he was feeling upset. Eventually the bell rang and they walked out into the hallway.

“Joooooooohn!” John turned around and Vriska ran up and kissed him.

“Wha—Vriska!” John exclaimed. Dave pulled him away from Vriska.

“John, who the hell is this?!” he asked.

“This is my friend Vriska.” John said.

“Friend?” Rose asked. John nodded quickly.

“Yeah! Uh, Vriska these are my friends Dave and Rose.”

“Oh. They’re totally not as cool as the rest of us, right John?” Vriska asked. John hesitated. _How can I answer that?_

“Did I miss something? Who’s she?” Roxy asked, walking up to them. “And why does Dave have his arm around John?” John and Dave both realized he did and Dave quickly brought his arm down. “So seriously, what’s goin’ on?”

“This is John’s friend Vriska.” Rose said. “She showed up and kissed him and Dave got jealous.”

“I did not!” Dave protested. “I’m just upset that some girl I don’t know kissed my best bro!”

“Hey, if she gets to kiss John, I get to kiss John!” Roxy said. She grabbed John and kissed him. John flailed and Dave shoved Roxy away from him.

“Hey, he knows me lots more than you do.” Vriska said, grabbing John’s arm.

“Will you let go of my best bro?” Dave said, grabbing John’s other arm.

“What? You have a crush on him or something?”

“No!” Vriska smirked.

“Suuuuuuuure you don’t.”

“Let him go!” Dave yanked him away from Vriska. Vriska just yanked him back. Soon they were playing tug-of-war with John. _Ow, ow, ow! What the heck is going on?!_

“S-stop it!” John yelled. Vriska and Dave hadn’t heard him over the noise of the hallway and kept arguing. Then Rose closed her book and hit them both over the head with it.

“Stop it!” she yelled. Dave and Vriska both stopped and stared at her. “You’re going to hurt poor John. Now let him go.” Dave and Vriska both apologized and let go of John’s arms.

“Thanks Rose.” John said. “Vriska, what are you even doing here?”

“I came to visit you of course!” Vriska said.

“During school hours? I have to get to class!”

“Fine, I’ll visit you after school, okay?”

“Yeah, that sounds better.”

“Come on John, we’re gonna be late for class.” Dave said.

“Bye Vriska.” John waved to Vriska before following Dave.

“So she’s really just your friend?” Dave asked him.

“Yeah! Really! We dated for a bit but it didn’t really work out so I broke up with her. But I guess she still likes me.” Dave just nodded and they sat down. _I hope he’s not upset._

After school John’s dad drove him home as usual. When John got there Vriska was waiting for him.

“Hi John!” she said.

“Hi Vriska.” John said. He put his bag in his room then went back downstairs. He sat with Vriska in front of the TV and she handed him a movie.

“It just came out on DVD.” she said. “I thought you’d want it.”

“Thanks!” It was the latest Nic Cage movie! John hadn’t gotten a chance to see it in theaters. He got up and put it in the DVD player. He sat next to Vriska and his dad gave them some popcorn.

“I’m going out John.” his dad said. “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t approve of.”

“Daaaaad.” John groaned.

“I mean it John.”

“I know that. We’re just friends.” His dad nodded and walked out of the room. Vriska smiled and put her arm around John.

“Y’know, I thought we were a great couple.” she said. John sighed.

“Yeah…but then you-”

“Yeah, I know. Aradia. You don’t have to bring it up again.”

“Sorry.” The reason John had dumped her was because of what she had done to Aradia. He wasn’t sure if it had been an accident or not, but he had seen that Vriska hadn’t been too upset. He’d realized she could be kind of scary sometimes. And it honestly scared the crap out of him. So he dumped her and then suddenly had to move to another town. He’d been worried Vriska was upset with him but apparently she wasn’t.

When John’s dad got home John and Vriska were having a pillow fight. He got mad at them because they almost knocked over the ashes of John’s grandmother. Vriska decided it was time for her to go so John saw her to the door.

“Tell everyone I say hi.” John said.

“I will John.” Vriska leaned forward and kissed his cheek. “Bye!” She ran off and disappeared around the corner. John sighed and rubbed his cheek. He had liked dating Vriska, but he just couldn’t get around the fact that he was now just a bit frightened of her.

“Come on John. It’s time for you to go to bed.” his dad said. John nodded and walked upstairs. He changed into pyjamas and lay down in bed. He touched his cheek again and sighed. _Well…that was unexpected._ His dad poked his head in and said “Goodnight John.”

“Goodnight dad.” John said. His dad turned out the light and John closed his eyes. He fell asleep after a few minutes.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ugh, short chapters. I hate them, yet this fanfic has quite a few. :( Sorry.

Dave sighed and slouched in bed. For some reason he’d been really annoyed ever since Vriska had shown up. He guessed it was because she’d kissed his best bro.  _Yeah, that’s all it is._ He sighed and stretched his arms. He took his shades off and looked at his eyes in the mirror. One was looking better but the one his mom had punched yesterday still wasn’t too good. Dave put his shades back on and quietly walked downstairs. He could hear his mom watching TV in the living room and he knew his dad was in Dirk’s room. He tip-toed to the kitchen and grabbed an icepack from the freezer. Then he went back upstairs to his room and sat on his bed. He took his shades off and rested the icepack on his eye. He sighed and drummed his fingers on his leg.

Then Rose suddenly walked into his room. “Hey Dave.” she said. She stumbled a bit and caught herself on Dave’s desk. He realized she was drunk. She giggled and wobbled over to him. She flopped down on his lap and smiled at him.

“Rose, I’m busy.” Dave said, pointing at the icepack on his face. Rose pouted and poked his cheek.

“Don’t be boring Dave.” she said. Dave sighed and rolled his eyes. Rose reached up and wrapped her arms around him. “C’mon Dave. Be interesting already.”

“Not today, okay?” Dave said. Rose grumbled but didn’t let him go. Dave didn’t mind; he just wanted to be able to keep the icepack on his eye. Then his phone suddenly went off. He checked and saw that John was pestering him.

ectoBiologist [EB] began pestering turntechGodhead [TG] at 9:05 pm

EB: hi dave.

TG: yo

EB: hey you aren’t upset are you?

TG: no

TG: why would i be?

EB: oh, you just seemed a bit upset after vriska showed up.

TG: nah, it’s cool man

TG: shouldn’t you be in bed?

EB: you don’t seem to be.

TG: no, i was woken up by a nerd pestering me

EB: ha-ha. i actually am in bed, i’m just not asleep.

TG: go to sleep john

EB: yes mom. :B

TG: i’m not your mom john

TG: don’t call me mom

EB: yes mom.

TG: john!

EB: ha-ha. sorry.

TG: go to sleep

turntechGodhead [TG] ceased pestering ectoBiologist [EB] at 9:06 pm


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ugh, I forgot how many short chapters there are with this fanfiction. Too many, there are too many. :P Sorry.

Soon it was John’s birthday. There was a party at his house and he’d invited his friends from his old town. Of course, Dave, Rose and Roxy were also coming. And Jade and Jake. John was almost too excited to fall asleep on the day before his birthday. But eventually he fell asleep.

The next day he jumped out of bed and stepped out of his room. Splat! John looked down and saw he had stepped in a cake. He could hear his dad laughing around the corner. He wiped the cake off his foot and went to the bathroom. He gelled his hair and brushed his teeth. Then he got dressed and went downstairs.

Jade and Jake were the first to arrive. Bec was with them and he jumped on top of John and licked his face.

“Hi John!” Jade said. “Happy birthday!”

“Thanks Jade.”

“Hello John.” Jake said, patting his shoulder. “You’re getting tall!”

“Yeah, I know!”

Eventually Dave, Rose and Roxy arrived. John introduced them to Jade and Jake. Roxy had brought a bunch of alcohol with her but John’s dad confiscated it. Vriska showed up next. Then Kanaya and Karkat. Then Gamzee and Tavros. The others weren’t able to make it, but John didn’t mind.

John’s dad brought out a bunch of cake and Roxy played some music on her phone. She got Gamzee and Vriska to dance with her. Vriska dragged John up and had him dance too. Kanaya talked with Rose while Tavros watched Gamzee dance and ate some cake. Karkat talked with Jade and Jake.

“Okay, time for presents John!” Roxy said, holding up her present. John sat down and opened the presents from his friends. Vriska had gotten him another Nic Cage movie. Karkat had gotten him one of his stupid movies. He then spent about fifteen minutes trying to convince everyone that the movie wasn’t a piece of shit. Eventually Vriska told him to shut up and let John unwrap another present. Kanaya had gotten John a new outfit. Gamzee had gotten him some faygo. Tavros had gotten him a Ghostbusters videogame. Jade had gotten him a huge pack of gushers. Jake had gotten him the movie _Avatar_. Roxy had gotten him some vodka, which his dad immediately took away. Rose had gotten him a blue scarf she said she’d knitted herself. And Dave had gotten him a CD full of his raps.

“Cool! Thanks guys!” John said.

“Now let’s keep partying!” Roxy said. She got everyone (except Karkat and Dave) dancing. Eventually John grabbed Dave and made him dance. Jade grabbed Karkat and got him to dance. Gamzee probably would have but he was helping Tavros. After dancing for awhile they all sat down and talked for a bit.

“What should we do now?” Jade asked.

“Pillow fight!” Roxy declared, throwing a pillow at John. He grabbed one and retaliated. Since they’d all grabbed some pillows from a closet to sit on they all had a weapon. In a matter of seconds the pillow fight was at full heat. John smacked Vriska with his pillow and she retaliated quickly. Dave got him and he laughed and got him back. Rose and Kanaya seemed to have formed a truce and were working together to take everyone down. Gamzee was helping Tavros and seemed to have decided not to go against Karkat. Karkat didn’t really have a truce with anyone and just attacked anyone near him. Jade and Jake were teamed up and getting everyone they could. Vriska seemed to be solely focusing on Tavros, which meant she also was fighting off Gamzee. All in all, it was utter chaos.

When John’s dad got home from work they were all lying on the floor, completely exhausted. He just put some blankets over them and left the room. They all lay there and after awhile John fell asleep.

When John woke up everyone had left. He glanced at the clock and realized it was midnight. He debated going up to his room but decided he was too tired. He lay on the couch and pulled a blanket over him. He sighed happily and glanced around the room.  _That was the best birthday party I’ve ever had._


	9. Chapter 9

“And where were you three?!” Dave, Rose and Roxy froze. They turned around and found their mom glaring at them. _Shit, she caught us._

“We went out.” Dave said.

“Oh, really? I didn’t know!” his mom said sarcastically. She walked up and slammed him against the wall, blocking the way out at the same time. “I’m sure you haven’t forgotten that you’re not allowed to leave the house on Sunday?!”

“No mom.” Dave said. She grabbed his hair and slammed his head into the floor. Dave’s shades dug into his face and he gritted his teeth.

“I hope you all realize how much trouble you’re in!”

“Yes mom.” Dave, Rose and Roxy all chorused.

“You two go to your rooms. I’ll deal with you later.” Dave listened to Rose’s and Roxy’s footsteps climb the stairs and fade away. His mom picked him up and held him eye level to her.“You are such a pain in the ass!” She threw him to the ground and kicked at him. Dave covered his head with his arms and bit his tongue to keep from crying out. He plugged his ears to block out the insults his mom yelled. But she just hit his wrists with a vodka bottle. The bottle shattered and cut Dave’s arm. He yelled and covered the cut with his hand. His mom threw the bottle at him and it struck his side. She picked him up and dragged him by his hair up the stairs. She threw him into his room and slammed the door. He heard the lock click and listened to his mom’s footsteps walk to Rose’s room. After a moment of silence he heard Rose scream. He clenched his teeth and covered his ears.

Eventually the screams stopped and Dave uncovered his ears. He listened to his mom walk out of Rose’s room and lock the door. Then she walked into Roxy’s room. Roxy didn’t scream, but Dave could hear his mom yelling. He sighed and looked down at his arm. He wouldn’t be able to wash the blood off if he couldn’t get to the bathroom. He glanced at his mini fridge and debated using apple juice.  _That’s such a shitty idea. There’s no way I could use apple juice for such an un-ironic task._ Dave sighed and stood up. He took an almost-empty first-aid kit out of his closet and took a cloth and some pressure bandages. He wiped up as much blood as he could with the cloth and then wrapped the bandage around his arm. He tossed the cloth in the garbage and put the first-aid kit back. Then he pulled a small purple box out of his closet. It was a makeup kit from Rose. Of course, the only kind of makeup in it was the kind for covering up bruises and small cuts. Dave opened it and sat in front of his mirror.

He covered up the bruises on his face and neck. Then he took his shirt off and did the ones there. He really didn’t think he needed to, but he was paranoid so he still did. Then he threw out his shirt because there was now a rip in it from the vodka bottle. He also had to bandage the cut it had left on his side. After that he sighed and put his shades back on. He looked in the mirror and nodded to himself.  _You totally can’t tell I just had the shit beaten out of me._

Dave sat down on his bed and looked around the room. He was no longer tired, so he doubted he could fall asleep. So he got up and went on his computer. He played a few games for awhile but he found that he just couldn’t concentrate on them. He ran his fingers through his hair and took a deep breath. He heard a thump from Dirk’s room and he gritted his teeth. His dad was in there. Again.

“Dammit!” he whispered. He punched the wall and dug his nails into the palm of his hand. If he listened carefully he could hear Rose crying quietly. He yelled and banged his head against the wall. He glanced at his left arm, the one without the bandage. He walked over to his drawer and riffled through it. Eventually he found his knife and held it up. He glanced at his wrist again and clenched his teeth. He slashed at it and held his arm over a dark patch of carpet that had been stained by blood enough times that it now looked black.

_I fucking hate this family!_


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Look at this, I'm updating on a Monday! :) Looks like sometimes I'll be updating three times a week! Woo-hoo!

John was a bit worried about Dave. He  _seemed_ okay, but when he banged his arm on a chair John thought it looked like it had hurt a lot more than it should have. John wanted to ask Dave about it but he had a feeling Dave would just give him some vague answer and manage to change the subject. He was good at doing that.

Dave and John were hanging out in John’s room. It was getting kind of late, but they were in no rush for Dave to leave. They were mostly just chilling and talking a bit. Then John’s dad came in.

“John, Vriska’s here to see you.” he said. “She’s downstairs.” John nodded and got up. He followed his dad downstairs and gasped when he saw Vriska.

“Vriska, what happened?!” He ran up to her and put a hand on her right shoulder. Vriska looked up at him and he saw that she had been crying. He could see that because one of her eyes was red. The other one was covered by an eye-patch. And her left arm was gone. John got Vriska to sit down on the couch and he sat next to her. She put her right arm around his shoulders and buried her face in the crook of his neck.

“I-it’s all my fault!” she exclaimed. John realized she was crying. He wrapped his arms around her in a hug.

“What happened?” he asked.

“I…I got into a fight with Terezi and Sollux. They were still upset about Aradia and Terezi…she…” John hugged her tightly as she cried harder. “It’s all my fault! I shouldn’t have gotten her killed!”

“You didn’t mean to.” Vriska clung to John tighter.

“I think I’m going to fall apart.”

“You’ve still got friends.” Vriska laughed hoarsely.

“Everyone else hates me. I got Aradia killed, why would they still like me?!” John couldn’t think of something to say. So instead he just rubbed the back of Vriska’s head.

“I don’t hate you Vriska.”

“I know that.” She looked up at him and smiled. John smiled too, just to make sure she wouldn’t get sad. Then Vriska leaned forward and kissed him. John’s eyes went wide and he caught a brief glimpse of Dave walking back upstairs. John pushed Vriska’s face away from his and sighed.

“Vriska-”

“I know.” she interrupted. “I know what you’re going to say, so you don’t have to say it.”

“Sorry.”

“You don’t have to apologise.” Vriska sat up and smiled. “Anyway, I’m going to move in with Aranea.”

“She lives in another province, doesn’t she?” Vriska nodded.

“Don’t worry, I’ll keep in touch. And I’ll try to visit you during summer vacation. I’ll get a part-time job so I’ll have enough to get out here.”

“You don’t have to do that, I can.” Vriska laughed and shook her head.

“No, I’d rather come out here. I’m pretty sure you’d somehow get lost trying to visit me.” John rolled his eyes. “Anyway, what’s your phone number here? I still don’t have it.”

“Oh, right.” John picked up a piece of paper and wrote it down. He gave it to Vriska and she put it in her pocket. She stood up and stretched her arm.

“I should get going. I’m leaving tomorrow, so I have to finish packing.” John nodded and stood up. He pulled her into a hug and she hugged him back.

“I’ll miss you.” he said.

“I’ll miss you too.” They smiled at each other. “I’ll call you once I get to Aranea’s, okay?”

“Okay.” Vriska smiled and kissed his cheek.

“Bye John.” She waved to him as she walked down the street. John stood there and waved back until she was out of sight. Then he sighed and walked back upstairs.

Dave was leaning against the wall with his arms crossed in front of him. John gave him a small smile and sat down.

“I thought Vriska was your ex.” Dave said.

“Oh, she still is. She just did that suddenly because she’s moving away. We’re not dating or anything, really.” Dave nodded slowly like he didn’t believe him.

“You didn’t seem to be making her stop.” John frowned at him. _Why is he so upset?_

“You walked back upstairs before I did! I did get her to stop. What’s with you? You don’t usually act like this.” Dave sighed and shoved his hands in his pockets.

“Whatever John, go have more fun with your girlfriend than me.”

“She’s not my girlfriend!” John protested, jumping up. “And she’s moving to another province so I can’t have fun with her! Why are you acting so weird?!”

“I’m not acting weird John!”

“Yes you are! Why are you so upset?!” Dave just shook his head.

“I’m done here. I’m going home.” John glared at him.

“Fine!” Dave flipped him off and slammed the door behind him. John growled and lay on his bed. _Why the heck had Dave been acting so weird?!_ John grabbed his pillow and kicked at it. His dad poked his head in and looked at him worriedly.

“Everything okay?” he asked.

“Fine! Leave me alone!” John snapped. His dad nodded and shut the door. John sighed and covered his face with his pillow. _I don’t understand my life anymore!_


	11. Chapter 11

Dave sat against the wall in his room and bit his tongue.  _Why am I so pissed off?!_ Dave grabbed his hair and tugged at it, ripping some strands out. He clawed at the carpet and banged his head against the wall.

“What’s wrong Dave?” Dave looked up to see Roxy, who wasn’t too drunk, standing in the doorway.

“Leave me alone.” Dave growled. Roxy shook he head and walked in, shutting the door behind her.

“You were just at John’s, right? So what happened?”

“Nothing! Leave me alone!” Roxy glared at him and punched his arm.

“Dave, you tell me what the hell is upsetting you or I will get mom!” Dave stared at her in shock. _Did she really mean that?!_ Roxy glared at him and he sighed.

“We got into an argument, okay?”

“About what?”

“I’m not even really sure! I was just upset for some reason!” Roxy sighed and nodded.

“Why don’t you apologise to him?” Dave shrugged and stared at the ground. Roxy got up and walked to the door.

“Where are you going?” Dave asked.

“Dirk wants his pizza.”

 

“Heey, Dirky, I got yer pizza!” Roxy said. She heard Dirk stop typing and get up. Roxy slid the pizza box through the cat-flap. “Hey, you remember Dave’s best bro that moved to town? I mentioned him? Anyway, Dave just had an argument with him, but apparently he’s not sure what it was about. He seems kind of reluctant to apologise too. I dunno how that’s gonna go.” Roxy waited but it was silent on the other side of the door. She sighed and shook her head. “Anyway, Rose and I are the same as always. So, yeah. That’s pretty much it. Bye Dirk.” Roxy waited for Dirk to say something but he remained quiet. She sighed and turned away from the door. _Maybe he’s just hopeless at this point._

 

Dirk listened to Roxy’s footsteps recede. He sat down at his computer and went onto Dave’s school’s website. He looked up all the kids named John. He clicked on the name John Egbert.  _That has to be him._ He hacked into the site and checked what he could find of him. There were some images of him hanging out with Dave and Rose.  _Definitely him. Now where does this guy live?_

 

John sighed and looked around his room. There was nothing to entertain him. He wasn’t in such a bad mood and now he was regretting not trying to get Dave to calm down instead of riling him up. And he couldn’t bring himself to contact Dave because he was probably still mad at him.  _I don’t even get what he was so mad about! I’m not going to hang out with Vriska more than him! She’s moving!_

Then John heard a tapping sound. He sat up and looked around. He jumped when he saw a guy outside his window. He had white hair like Dave’s, though a bit more blond, but not exactly like Rose’s or Roxy’s. He had pointy shades and a white T-shirt on. John walked up nervously and opened the window a crack.

“Who are you?” he asked.

“You’re John right?” the guy asked, ignoring his question. “Dave’s best bro?”

“Um…yeah I’m John, but-”

“Did you actually have an argument with him?!”

“He started it!” The guy sighed and John suspected he was rolling his eyes.

“I don’t care who started it, just call him or something and make up.”

“Why can’t he?”

“That’s not how he is, John. He’s either too afraid to or too embarrassed.”

“What?” John found it hard to imagine Dave being afraid or embarrassed. “How would you know? Do you even know him?” The guy opened his mouth, then hesitated. He sighed and shook his head.

“No, actually. I only know what I’ve been told about him. But that doesn’t matter. I know he’s the kind of person who needs friends, and unless I’m mistaken you’re his only friend at school.” John opened his mouth to protest, but closed it when he realized the guy was right. “Just talk to him okay? Do that right now.” John glanced at his computer, then back to the guy. “Now!” John sat at his computer and opened pesterchum. “And if anyone ever asks, you didn’t see me.” John watched the guy shut the window and jump down. He stared at the window in bewilderment for a few seconds. Then he tore his gaze away from it and back to the computer screen. He took a deep breath and pestered Dave.

ectoBiologist [EB] began pestering turntechGodhead [TG] at 10:37 pm

EB: dave?

EB: are you there?

EB: um, are you still mad?

EB: i’m not going to hang out with vriska more than you.

EB: and honestly, she kind of scares me.

EB: i enjoy hanging out with you a lot more.

EB: we’re still best bros, right?

TG: of course john

EB: dave!

TG: sorry for getting mad

TG: i dunno really why i was upset

EB: it’s okay!

EB: i’m just glad you’re still my best bro!

TG: john, you can’t separate two best bros

TG: it’s just not possible

EB: eh-heh-heh, good to hear!

“John, it’s a school night, go to sleep.” John’s dad said, poking his head in.

“Okay.” John said.

EB: okay, my dad’s making me go to bed now.

TG: okay

EB: goodnight dave!

TG: night

ectoBiologist [EB] ceased pestering turntechGodhead [TG] at 10:39 pm

John grinned and lay in bed.  _I’m so glad we’re still best bros! I sure hope we don’t get into arguments ever again!_ John sighed and closed his eyes.  _I bet Dave’s really happy too._


	12. Chapter 12

The next day at school John hung out with Dave as usual. He couldn’t help but feel relieved. He really didn’t like getting into arguments with his friends. Rose and Roxy didn’t seem to know about the argument either, which John was glad about. He didn’t want them being worried he and Dave were going to stop being friends. Because like Dave said, that was impossible.

After school Dave went and hung out at John’s place again. They watched one of John’s movies and John didn’t care that Dave complained about it a lot. He was just glad he and Dave were hanging out.

“So where did Vriska go?” Dave asked suddenly.

“Um, another province, but I can’t remember which one. She’ll be living with her older sister, who’s graduating from college soon.” Dave nodded and John hoped this wasn’t going to start another argument. “You’re not still mad, are you?”

“Of course not. Jeez John, lighten up. You’re all tense.” Dave reached over and tickled John. John laughed and fell off his bed. Dave bent over his and kept tickling him. John was extremely ticklish.

“C-cut it out! Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha! Dave! S-seriously! Aha-ha-ha-ha-ha! D-Dave!” Dave just laughed and kept tickling him. John managed to reach up and tickle him back. Dave was also pretty ticklish, it seemed. Soon the two of them were rolling around, laughing and tickling each other.

Eventually John called for a timeout. They both collapsed on the floor, still laughing. John was out of breath and still laughing at the same time. He grinned as he gulped air and chuckled. Then he noticed that Dave was sort of half on top of him with his head next to his. John wasn’t sure why but he was very aware of how close their faces were. He quickly sat up before he could start blushing or something else just as weird.

“Wanna play a videogame?” he asked. Dave smirked and nodded.

“Bet I kick your ass.” he said. John grinned.

“You’re on!”

In the end they tied with the number of wins in Mario Kart. Dave seemed annoyed but John just found it funny.

“I totally was going to beat you in that last race.” Dave said. John laughed and poked his nose.

“Sure you were Dave.” he said. He poked Dave’s nose again and Dave swatted his hand away.

“Dude, cut that out.” he said. John grinned and did it again. He kept poking at Dave’s face and eventually he and Dave were just wrestling each other on the floor.

“Ahem.” John and Dave stopped and looked up to see John’s dad, who was smirking at them. They quickly untangled themselves and stood up. “Dave’s sister’s here to pick him up.” Dave nodded and John followed him downstairs. They found Roxy outside in the car John saw them get driven home in.

“Hi John!” she said, waving.

“Hi Roxy.” John said, grinning.

“See ya Egderp.” Dave said, ruffling John’s hair. John grinned and waved to him. Dave got in the car and Roxy drove off. John walked back inside where his dad was waiting for him.

“Is he your boyfriend?” he asked. John felt himself blush and he shook his head quickly.

“No! We’re just best bros!” His dad chuckled and nodded. John went back upstairs and collapsed on his bed. _Why did my dad ask that?! Does it actually look like we’re dating?! But I’m not gay! I dated Vriska! But I felt really weird when Dave’s head was close to mine…but that’s probably just nothing! …Right?_


	13. Chapter 13

Dave slumped against the wall and ran his fingers through his hair.  _What just happened? Did that count as flirting?! Maybe not but…Jesus I totally could have kissed John there! Our faces were really close and he had that stupidly adorable smile on and—okay, I’d better calm down. Deep breaths Dave._ Dave sighed and rubbed his eyes with his hands.

“What’s wrong Dave?” Dave looked up to find Rose and Roxy standing in front of him.

“…Nothing.” Rose and Roxy rolled their eyes in sync and crouched in front of Dave.

“That’s not true. What’s bothering you?” Dave took a deep breath and sighed.

“…I think I’m gay for John.”

“What?!” Dave, Rose and Roxy looked at the doorway and froze. Their mom was standing there, glaring at Dave. _Oh fuck. She’s homophobic too. Oh crap, crap, crap! Why did she have to be listening?!_ Their mom walked up and picked Dave up by his hair. He yelled and tried to make her let go. She held his face close to hers and he could smell the alcohol on her breath. “You playing some kind of joke on me, freak?!”

“I-” His mom slammed him to the ground before Dave could finish his sentence.

“You filth! You freak! You unforgiving brat! What are you trying to do?! Ruin the family reputation I’ve built us?!”

“No-”

“SHUT UP!” Dave covered his head with his arms as she proceeded to beat him. She kept yelling at the top of her lungs and Dave bit his tongue to keep from yelling. He peeked through his hands and saw her raise a fist. Then a hand reached out and grabbed her arm.

“Will you stop it?” Dave lowered his arms and stared at the person in shock. _…Is that Dirk?!_ It certainly seemed to be his older brother. He had pale hair and dark anime shades. He had a white t-shirt on and white jeans.

“Y-you…” Their mom sputtered and stared at Dirk in shock. Dave wondered if she could remember who he was. Eventually she snatched her hand out of his grasp and walked out of the room. Dirk bent over Dave and looked at his bruises.

“You okay Dave?”

“…That’s such a dumb question.” Dave said, regaining control of his voice. Dirk chuckled and nodded.

“Yeah. Hey Roxy, go get an icepack, will you?” Roxy nodded and went downstairs. Rose walked up to Dirk cautiously.

“Dirk?” she asked. Dirk nodded and stood up. He hugged her and she hugged him back twice as hard.

“Man, you’ve gotten tall.” he said. Rose smiled and nodded. Dirk grabbed Dave’s hand and helped him sit up. Roxy returned with the icepack and gave it to Dave. Dave put it on the black eye he’d gotten and Dirk stood up. He turned and started to walk out of the room.

“Where are you going?” Rose asked.

“My room.” Dave could see the disappointment on Rose and Roxy’s faces.

“You just left! Stay out a little longer!” Roxy protested. Dirk shook his head.

“I’m not used to being out of my room. I’m more comfortable in there.”

“And dad’s waiting for you to keep playing with him.” Dave growled. Dirk stared at him and Dave could see the look of shock on his face. He smirked at his older brother, who just backed away and eventually ran upstairs. Rose looked even more disappointed. Roxy looked confused.

“What are you talking about?” she asked. She ran out of the room and followed Dirk, calling after him. Rose sat next to Dave. Dave heard Roxy yell and knew she’d found out. He and Rose had known for awhile. Dave gritted his teeth and felt angry tears prickle his eyes. He grabbed his knife and held it over his wrists.

“Wait.” Rose said. Dave looked up at her. “Do it in the bathroom, or you’ll stain the carpet again. I’ll come with you, okay?” Dave nodded and stood up. Rose grabbed her bottle of vodka and took a big gulp from it as she followed Dave to the bathroom. Dave sat in the bathtub and cut his wrists. Rose sat behind him and wrapped her arms around him. She kissed his ear and he sighed. Then he noticed Roxy in the doorway. She stared at them for a few seconds, then ran to her room. Dave sighed and leaned his head back on Rose’s shoulder. _Crap, I hadn’t meant for her to find out about that._


	14. Chapter 14

John was drifting off to sleep when he was startled awake by his phone ringing. He checked and saw that it was Roxy.  _What does she want now?_

“Hi Roxy, what-”

“Jooohn!” Roxy wailed. John froze.

“What’s wrong?” He could hear Roxy crying. She sobbed and took a deep breath.

“It’s all…everyone’s so…I-I just…please get over here! I’m falling apart! I…”

“Okay, I’ll be right over.” John ran downstairs and put his shoes on. “I’ll try to be fast, okay?”

“…’Kay.” John hung up and wrote a quick note to his dad. Then he ran out and down to the bus stop. He’d checked the bus routes the first day they arrived so he knew a bus would take him a block away from Dave’s at this time. He had change with him and put it in the coin slot when the bus arrived. He sat and waited anxiously as the bus drove. When it stopped he ran down the street to Dave’s. He knocked at the door, hoping like heck Dave’s mom wouldn’t answer again.

It was Roxy who answered. She collapsed in front of John and he stared at her. She was holding an almost-empty bottle of vodka, her eyes were bloodshot and she was crying. John bent down and helped her up. He put one of her arms around his shoulders and held her steady.

“Roxy, are you okay? What’s wrong?” Roxy sobbed and clutched John’s shirt. John could smell the alcohol on her breath and breathed in through his mouth. “Are you okay? C’mon, talk to me.”

“I…I feel sick.” Roxy said. John glanced around.

“Where’s the bathroom?”

“Upstairs, second door on left.” John dragged her up some stairs and she got him to turn right. He got to the second door on the left and opened it. Roxy ran over to the toilet and puked. But John wasn’t worrying about her anymore. Instead he was staring at the two other people in the bathroom: Dave and Rose. Dave’s arms were at his side and blood was running down them. Dave’s cheeks looked wet from tears. Rose was sitting on his lap. And she was kissing him.

Dave pushed Rose away from him and stared at John with wide eyes. Yeah, his shades were off, revealing his bright red eyes. John shut the door and walked up to him.

“What-”

“Shh!” Dave hissed. John heard some footsteps and Roxy stood up and grabbed John. She shoved him in the bathtub and hid him behind the shower curtain. John was about to protest, then Dave’s mom opened the door. She stared at Roxy, who shrank back.

“I’m going out for awhile. When I get back I want to see you, Dave and Rose all in your rooms, is that clear?!”

“Yes mom.”

“Good.” She slammed the door and John heard her footsteps recede. Eventually he heard the car start up and drive away. John stood up and looked at Dave and Rose. He realized Rose was drunk, just like Roxy.

“John-”

“What the hell are you two doing?!” John exploded. “You’re siblings! What the hell is wrong with you?!”

“Shut up!” Dave snapped. He’d started crying again and John noticed Roxy was too and Rose seemed to be on the verge of tears. “Just…shut up.” John looked at him and noticed the bruises on his arms.

“What are those bruises from?” he asked. Dave covered most of them with his hands and didn’t answer. “Dave, what’s going on? Why did you cut-”

“Because my family’s fucking messed up!” Dave shouted, jumping to his feet. “My mom beats the holy shit out of us, my sisters are addicted to alcohol, one of them’s fucking romantic with me and my brother who never leaves his room and I know pretty much nothing about is sleeping with my fucking dad!” John’s jaw dropped and he stared at Dave.

“How long has this stuff been going on?”

“Most of it’s been pretty much fucking FOREVER!”

“Why didn’t you tell someone?”

“Because we’ve had fear pounded into our fucking skulls since we were little! We’re too afraid to John!”

“Dave, you have to tell someone. Let’s call the police or something-”

“No!” Roxy cried, grabbing John’s arms. “You can’t! Don’t call someone! She’ll kill us! Mom’ll kill us, I’m serious!” John hesitated and looked at the scared faces of his friends.

“Please don’t tell anyone John.” Rose said. “Please.”

“…Okay.” John said. “I won’t tell anyone.” Roxy cried and hugged him.

“You’d better get home.” Dave said. “Before mom gets back.” John nodded and Roxy let go of him. He shakily walked out of the bathroom and downstairs. He walked outside and ran down the street. He ran all the way home. When he got there he was out of breath and exhausted. He walked up to his room and collapsed on his bed. He stared at the ceiling and felt himself start to cry. _I want to help them so bad! But I promised I wouldn’t tell anyone! Damn it! Why is this happening?!_ John pulled the covers over his head and curled up into a ball. He buried his face in his pillow and tried to calm down. He tried to erase the image of his beaten and bleeding best friend kissing his own sister. He tried to block out the sound of Roxy’s crying and Rose’s pleading. He sobbed and covered his face with his hands. _I wish I could do something!_


	15. Chapter 15

John did his best to act normal around Dave, Rose and Roxy. He could tell they were doing the same. But John got the feeling they weren’t being convincing enough because a few kids gave them strange looks and Rose’s fans asked if she was alright.

“I’m just tired.” Rose said. “Dave kept me up last night trying to talk to me.”

“Did you have to tell them that?!” Dave asked her afterwards. Rose smiled and shrugged, but John could see the smile was forced. There was an awkward tension around them all day and John found it hard to have a conversation. When school ended he asked Dave if he wanted to come over.

“Nah, not today.” Dave said.

“Oh, okay.” John waved to him as he got in his car. John sighed and got in his dad’s car. He stared out the window as his dad drove, worry eating at him.

“What’s wrong?” his dad asked. “You’re awfully silent.”

“Um, it’s nothing.” John said.

When he got home John sat in his room and stared at the wall. He wanted to yell and shout and punch the wall. He wanted to help Dave. And Rose and Roxy. He felt really upset that they didn’t want him to help. He wanted to talk to someone about it, but he’d promised not to tell anyone.

Then his phone went off. John checked and was surprised to see it was Vriska.

“Hello?”

“Hi John. Did you miss me?”

“Yeah, but you can’t be there already!”

“Ha, no I’m not. I’m just a bit lonely so I’m phoning you. Sorry if I’m interrupting something important.”

“No, you’re not. I’m just sitting here in my room.”

“Is everything okay? You sound upset.” John hesitated. He was bursting with the need to talk to someone.

“I promised not to tell.”

“Okay, now I’m worried. John, tell me what happened.”

“……”

“John, I promise on my guilt over what I did to Aradia I won’t tell a soul. Now what happened?” John took a deep breath.

“Okay, it’s like this…” He told her everything that had happened the other day; from Roxy phoning him to Dave not wanting to come over to his house that day. Vriska was silent the whole time. It wasn’t until John finished that she spoke.

“John, go to Dave’s right now.” she said.

“What?”

“I don’t care what excuse you use. Say you’re worried about him or something. Just get over there!”

“Why?”

“Because I have an idea of what’s gonna happen!”

“What’s the idea?”

“I’ll tell you if it doesn’t happen. Just get over there!”

“…O-okay.”

“Call me afterwards and tell me how it goes.”

“Okay.”

“Good luck.”

“Thanks.” John hung up and put his phone away. He walked downstairs and told his dad he was going for a walk.

“Don’t be gone too long. You have your phone with you?” John held it up and his dad nodded. John put his shoes on and jogged down the street. He jogged the whole way to Dave’s house. When he got there he saw only one car in the parking lot. So he guessed Dave’s dad wasn’t home yet. He walked up to the door and hesitated. _Please don’t let their mom answer._ He knocked on the door. He heard someone run over and Roxy burst the door open.

“John! Oh my god! Thank god you came! Oh my god, I don’t know what to do!”

“What’s wrong? What’s happened?” Roxy grabbed his shirt and pulled him upstairs to Dave’s room. John walked in and gasped.


	16. Chapter 16

Dave was curled up in a ball in the corner of his room. He was holding a bloody knife in his right hand, which was trembling. His shades were lying on the floor and John could see bruises on his face. Lying on the ground a few feet away from Dave was the body of his mom.

“…Dave?” John squeaked. Dave looked up at him with an expression of self-disgust and horror.

“I-I didn’t mean to…” he stuttered. “I didn’t realize what I was doing, I…” John approached Dave, who flinched away from him. “N—stay away from me!” John bent down and stared at Dave.

“Are you okay?” he asked. “You’re not hurt?” Dave shook his head slowly and John breathed a sigh of relief.

“You’re not…scared?” Dave asked.

“Well…a bit I guess. But I know you won’t hurt me.” John smiled and patted Dave’s head. Dave looked totally taken aback. John reached forward and hugged him. After a few seconds Dave dropped the knife and hugged him back. He started crying and John stroked his hair. “Shh.” he whispered. “It’s okay Dave. I’m right here. Shh. I’m not going anywhere. I promise. Shh. Shh.”

“What are we going to do?” Rose asked. “About…” She pointed at their mom.

“I’ll take the blame.” They all turned to see the guy who John was now sure was Dave’s older brother standing in the doorway.

“What? But Dirk…” Roxy said.

“But you’ll go to jail!” Rose exclaimed. Dirk nodded.

“It’s okay. I’ve been a shitty brother, so I’m cool with doing this for you Dave.” Dave looked like he was going to start crying even harder.

“That’s not fair.” he said. “You have to go and make me feel bad for you at the end!” Dirk chuckled and nodded.

“Sorry about that.”

“There’s gotta be a way out of this without doing that.” John said. “Isn’t there?” Roxy and Dirk looked doubtful.

“Well…will they see it as an act of self-defence?” Rose asked. “If Dave was just defending himself, he might not get charges pressed against him.”

“Was she attacking you Dave?” John asked. Dave nodded and stared at the ground. “Then it should go fine…right?” Dave just shrugged. They were all silent for awhile. Then they heard a car pull in and the front door open.

“Honey, I’m home!” Dave, Rose, Roxy and Dirk froze. Dirk walked downstairs and John could the muffled sounds of his voice and who John assumed was their dad. Then he heard someone get slapped and Dirk yelled a lot.

“I’m not doing this shit anymore!” he yelled. John heard some things break and more shouting. Eventually a door slammed and they heard a car drive off. Dirk came back upstairs.

“Dirk?” Roxy said. “What…?”

“Dad’s not coming back.” he said. Roxy nodded and patted Dirk’s shoulder.

“We should call the police now.” John said. Everyone else hesitated. Then Dave nodded. He pulled out his phone and dialed. But he handed the phone to John.

“Hello, what is the state of your emergency?” a woman asked.

“I-I’m at my friend’s house. His mom’s…dead.”

“What is the address of your friend’s house?” Dave told John their address and John repeated it. The woman assured him help was on the way. John thanked her and hung up. He gave Dave back his phone. Dave put it on the floor and wrapped his arms around his knees. John hugged him and stroked his hair.

“It’s gonna be fine Dave.” Dave just nodded and started crying again. John pulled him closer to him and whispered in his ear. “Shh. It’s okay now. Shh. You’re gonna be fine Dave. You’re gonna be fine. Shh. Shh.”


	17. Chapter 17

Things were really looking up after that. Dave got through clean with the police. The police tracked down Dave’s dad and tried to bring him back but he got violent and was arrested. Since Dirk was an adult he took over caring for his siblings. They had their mom cremated. They took her ashes and dumped them in the garbage.

Everyone in school found out about it. Kids gossiped to no end and some of them said some pretty awful things to Dave. Eventually John lost his temper at them and got into a fight with them. He got detention for a week, but he didn’t care. Rose’s fan club didn’t hate her when they found out about what had been going on. Instead they admired her even more for being able to cope with it and move forward. Rose and Roxy worked on getting over their addictions and Dave managed to quit smoking weed.

It turned out Vriska had guessed correctly as to what had happened. She told John he did great with handling the situation. She arrived at Aranea’s house and was doing well living with her. She talked to John on the phone every Saturday evening.

When Jade found out what happened she and Jake came and visited John. Jade fussed over him and told him how worried she’d been. She also talked to Dave and Rose. She got to know them pretty well and told Rose her chumhandle so they could talk on pesterchum. Jake and Dirk seemed to get along really well too.

Dave hung out at John’s place every day after school. They talked, watched movies and did their homework. John always felt really happy to have Dave around.

On Christmas Eve, Dave was spending the night at John’s. They were too excited to go to sleep so instead they stayed up and watched creepy movies until John made them stop. He didn’t like creepy movies. So to cheer John up Dave started a pillow fight. At first they tried to be quiet but just ended up laughing and shouting and eventually wrestling each other on the floor.

“Could you two be a bit more quiet?” John’s dad asked.

“Sorry dad.” John said. His dad shut the door and John and Dave burst out laughing. Dave sat up, grinning. John had wound up sprawled on his lap. Dave smirked and poked John’s nose. John grinned and poked Dave’s. This started a short nose-poking battle that ended when Dave grabbed John and pulled him into a hug. John was about to say something when Dave kissed him. He gasped and Dave grinned. John’s bedside clock changed to 12:00.

“Merry Christmas John.” Dave said. John grinned and kissed him back.

“Merry Christmas Dave.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And there's the fanfiction. I hope you liked it! :) Next up, I'm posting a vampirestuck AU, so look forward to it!


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